Tag Archives: Remember the Poor

Learning to Pastor from Tiffany Aching

A_Hat_Full_of_Sky_CoverIt may sound odd to some people, but I think the best pastoring book out there wasn’t written by a follower of Jesus nor was it written as a pastoring book. Rather it was written by an atheist known to write satires against religion of all types.

The book I’m talking about is A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett.

Yes, I just named a fantasy novel about a young witch the best pastoring book out there. Yeah, I know it is strange; but bear with me as Pratchett really does have a lot to say about pastoring people.

The novel A Hat Full of Sky is about a young gal, Tiffany Aching, who is learning to become a witch. At first, Tiffany is excited about her new apprenticeship with an elderly witch, Miss Level. However rather than learning “real magic” like she thought she would, Tiffany assists Miss Level in helping out the elderly, tired, poor and outcasts of the community. These seemingly insignificant and un-magical tasks eventually gets the best of Tiffany who asks Granny Weatherwax (the most highly-regarded witch in the land) why she has do that stuff. Listen to Granny Weatherwax answer:

“Now that’s what I call magic—seein’ all that, dealin’ with all that, and still goin’ on. It’s sittin’ up all night with some poor old man who’s leavin’ the world, taking away such pain as you can, comfortin’ their terror, seein’ ‘em safely on their way…and then cleanin’ ‘em up, layin’ ‘em out, making ‘em neat for the funeral, and helpin’ the weeping widow strip the bed and wash the sheets—which is, let me tell you, no errand for the fainthearted—and stayin’ up the next night to watch over the coffin before the funeral, and then going home and sitting down for five minutes before some shouting angry man comes bangin’ on your door ‘cuz his wife’s havin’ difficulty givin’ birth to their first child and the midwife’s at her wits’ end and then getting up and fetching your bag and going out again…We all do that, in our own way, and she does it better’n me, if I was to put my hand on my heart. That is the root and heart and soul and center of witchcraft, that is. The soul and center!”

In really reading Granny Weatherwax’s response to Tiffany, you realize that witches in Pratchett’s Discworld books act a lot like pastors. Or, perhaps I  should say, they act like what pastors should act like. Witches are the ones who help teach the people, the ones fighting for justice while not seeking credit, the ones helping the poor, helpless, elderly, and the like. Witches, in the words of Pratchett,  help “people when life is on the edge. Even people you don’t like.”

The problem is that not all witches agree with Granny Weatherwax’s definition of witchcraft. Some of them would rather have the gold and glory that comes with positions of power rather than serving in the shadows. Tiffany has to make the choice as to what type of which she is going to be – just like new pastors must make a choice of what type of pastor they are going to be. Are they going to use their position to seek personal glory? To use the trappings of showmanship to wow the crowd and emotional direct the people to follow them just like the antagonists of our book?

It may sound like a simple decision. Say “no” to showmanship and “yes” to loving people. Reality isn’t that simple. Reality is messy with broken relationships, sick people throwing up on you, others taking advantage of your good graces, etc., etc. This is why I like this book and would recommend all new pastors to read it. Pratchett, as a student of human nature, paints a messing picture of a young gal faced with the same decisions a new pastors is faced with. Learning to navigate the emotions that flood our lives…well, I guess that is something we all – pastors, non-pastors, young, old, female and male – must learn to do.

So in conclusion, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett. Read it for fun and, while you do, think about the pastoral implications of being a witch.

It requires a missionary mentality…

[box]The following text was written by Cheryl and Lance Pittluck, pastors of the VCF of Anaheim, for the recently released “Remember the Poor” booklet published by the Vineyard USA.[/box]

Cheryl and Lance Pittluck
Cheryl and Lance Pittluck

“There can be little argument that the goal of the Christian life is to be more like Jesus… to act and think, to respond and speak like Jesus. And therefore, we must also aim for the priorities of Jesus.

‘The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed’ (Luke 4:18).

We preach, and we preach good news, and we preach good news to the poor, I hope. But reaching out to the poor doesn’t necessarily come naturally. Unless ‘the poor’ are your family, friends and immediate community, it’s easy to not give them much thought. They often go unheard, not having a voice in society. They may not shop where we shop, hang out in the places where we socialize, or even attend our churches. And yet, they are to be a primary concern to us, as they are to God.

‘For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help. He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight’ (Ps. 72:12-14).

The answer seems obvious that we are to make a concerted effort to carry out God’s commands to love, serve and minister to the poor. Taking our faith out into the streets may mean searching for the streets that are hidden from our daily lives. It requires a missionary mentality… the kind of thinking and planning that goes into ministry to another culture different from our own. Because that is what poverty is, a culture. They live by different rules, having learned to survive with less than they need – less money and material possessions, but also less education, tools, opportunities, and options. And before we can really serve them, we have to learn from them what it means to be poor, and who they are.

‘Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?’ (Is. 58:6).

How do I minister to you? I get to know you, spend time with you, listen, ask questions and even share from my own life. And I have to show you that I care and can be trusted. This takes time, persistence, consistency and commitment. How do we minister to the poor? We meet them, befriend them, listen to and learn from them, love and serve them, and invite them into our family to share what we have – the hope and promise and freedom that comes from living in the light and love of God.

‘For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’ (2 Cor. 3:17).”

– Cheryl and Lance Pittluck

What Jesus Said About the Poor

[box]The following text is an excerpt from the recently released “Remember the Poor” booklet published by the Vineyard USA.[/box]

the poorThe Poor In The Old Testament

In the Gospels, we see Jesus spending a considerable amount of time among the poor, serving them, encouraging them, and even standing up for them. He was carrying on the deep, rich Jewish biblical tradition of providing for those in need.

These words from the book of Deuteronomy reveal God’s tenderness toward the socially vulnerable:

“He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing (Deut. 10:18).

“If there is a poor man among your brothers in any of the towns of the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother. Rather be openhanded and freely lend him whatever he needs” (Deut. 15:7-8).

“There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land” (Deut. 15:11).

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter – when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” (Is. 58:6-7).

The Poor In The Gospels

From these roots, Jesus calls the early Church to commit to seek out the poor and dignify them with their care:

“Looking at his disciples he said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God’ (Luke 6:20).

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed” (Luke 4:18).

“…But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous’” (Luke 14:13-14).

The Poor In The New Testament

Following Jesus’ example, the apostles and the early Church embody Jesus’ love for the poor:

“All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along” (Gal. 2:10).

“Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality (Rom. 12:13).

“Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? (James 2:5).

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (James 1:27).

A Movement That Cares For The Poor

After Jesus’ resurrection, in the earliest years of the Church, the Roman government struggled to care for the masses of widows and orphans overrunning their society. Motivated by Jesus’ model, and realizing that the poor were to be welcomed as Jesus himself, the early Christians addressed the issues of social struggle surrounding orphans and widows. Some scholars suggest this may have been the primary reason the Church grew like wildfire in its first century of life.

Since those early days, the church of Jesus Christ has been marked by our care for the least, the last, and the lost. When the marginalized and forgotten of any society are brought into the center of a loving community that worships Christ, powerful things begin to happen.

Jesus has called us to care for the poor – both for their sake and our own.

A Vineyard View of the Poor

[box]The following text is an excerpt from the recently released “Remember the Poor” booklet published by the Vineyard USA.[/box]

remember the poorWho are the poor?

Today, we often see poverty through the lens of economics or personal financial weakness. In the New Testament, however, the poor are generally seen as those who are powerless in society, and who therefore lack the basic necessities they need to sustain their lives. Without resources, and without a voice, they lack not only power, but also social respect and material goods. Because of the daily stresses of survival, relationships often break down. Poverty is a disease of society, and the remedies for all our social ills are found in the life and teaching of Jesus.

In the Scriptures, it seems that God has a special place in his heart for the poor. Poverty is mentioned, directly or indirectly, more than 2000 times in the Bible. Reminding us of the Church’s call to care for the marginalized and impoverished among us, Jesus said words that pierce us to this day:

“…‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’” (Matt. 25:40).

The Vineyard family of churches leans toward the poor, the outcast, and the outsider with the compassion of Jesus. From the beginning of our movement, Vineyard churches have worked to actively serve the poor in the most practical ways possible – in our towns, cities, and spheres of influence. John Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard, was personally committed to calling us to a radically compassionate life in the way of Jesus.

In the Vineyard, we believe that faithfulness to Jesus means that we are faithful to remember the poor, serve the poor, build community among the poor – and love the poor compelled by the love of God.